Turner Ashby

Turner Ashby, Jr. (23 October 1828-6 June 1862) was a colonel of the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. Ashby, a fine cavalry commander of the Army of Northern Virginia, was nicknamed "the Black Knight of the Confederacy" for his chivalry and talent, and he was killed in a skirmish in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia in 1862.

Biography
Turner Ashby was born in Fauquier County, Virginia in 1828, and he was privately educated, working in business and farming. Ashby was known for his chivalry, and he organized a company of cavalry for the US Army during the 1850s, serving on guard duty in Charles Town, West Virginia during John Brown's trial and execution. Ashby attempted to run for the state legislator as a US Whig Party member and a supporter of Henry Clay, but he was not elected dyue to the Whig Party's weakness in the region.

American Civil War
Ashby, although an opponent of secession, decided to volunteer in the Confederate States Army when his state seceded from the Union in 1861 at the start of the American Civil War, and he disrupted the B&O Railroad on the orders of Stonewall Jackson. On 16 October 1861, he attempted to lead an attack on Harpers Ferry, but he was defeated in a skirmish at Bolivar Heights, West Virginia and forced to retreat; the Union burnt all of their supplies at the arsenal to ensure that he did not capture them. His 7th Virginia Cavalry reached a strength of 27 companies in the spring of 1862, much larger than a typical regiment, and he became rivals with Jackson when Jackson attempted to cut down the size of his regiment and block him from being promoted; Ashby kept his regiment after threatening to resign in protest, and he was promoted to Brigadier-General on 23 May 1862. He took part in Jackson's Valley Campaign, and he engaged in a skirmish with the 1st New Jersey Cavalry at Good's Farm near Harrisonburg on 6 June 1862. Ashby was unhorsed and shot through the heart while waving his sword during a charge, depriving the CSA of a talented general.